Penalty openings with pivoted covers in soccer tables

ABSTRACT

A generally rectangular table soccer game having raised side walls and end walls with goal openings or areas centrally located in the opposite end walls, and penalty openings in the end walls on opposite sides of the goal openings adapted to receive a misdirected or foul ball and deposit it in a cup exterior of the table by means of a passageway connecting the penalty opening and the cup. Each goal opening is provided with a cover member pivotally connected to the end wall.

United States Patent Leonhart PENALTY OPENINGS WITH PIVOTED COVERS IN SOCCER TABLES Xaver Leonhart, 8381 Harburg, I-Iarburg near Landau/Isar, Germany Filed: Feb. 4, 1970 Appl. No.: 8,576

Inventor:

Foreign Application Priority Data Feb. 4, 1969 Germany ..G 69 05 046.0

u.s. Cl. I ..273/85 1) Int. Cl. ....A63i 7/06 Field of Search ..273/85, 94

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS Brown ..273/850 [4 1 Apr. 4, 1972 FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 746,550 5/1933 France ..273/94D 506,584 5/1939 GreatBritain ..273/85E Primary Examiner-Richard C. Pinkham Assistant Examiner-Paul E. Shapiro Attorney-Brady, OBoyle & Gates [5 7] ABSTRACT A generally rectangular table soccer game having raised side walls and end walls with goal openings or areas centrally located in .the opposite end walls, and penalty openings in the end walls on opposite sides of the goal openings adapted to receive a misdirected or foul ball and deposit it in a cup exterior of the table by means of a passageway connecting the penalty opening and the cup. Each goal opening is provided with a cover member pivotally connected to the end wall.

5 Claims, 2 Drawing Figures I PATENTED'APR 41972 3.653 .661

/N mvrok XAVER LEO/VHART ATTORNEYS PENALTY oraumos WITH rrvorsn COVERS IN soccsn TABLES BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention is directed to soccer game tables generally of the type as shown in U.S. Design Pat. 21 1,259, issued June 4, 1968 to Pierre Maillard. However, in all prior art table soccer games the end walls of the table and playing field contain only a goal opening or area into which a ball is directed by manipulation of the playing figures on the axially movable rods extending transverse of the table. There has been no provision in such table games to make them more realistically similar to the actual game of soccer by providing means to determine when penalty kicks for foul play shall be given. In the actual game, when a player commits a foul within the penalty area in front of the goal area, the opposing team gets a free penalty kick from the point 31 toward the goal of the player committing the foul. in existing table soccer games there is no provision whatever for simulating foul play and thus providing penalty kicks and penalty goals for fouls committed by one team upon the other. The present invention, therefore, provides apparatus in table soccer games defining penalty areas on each side of the goals adapted to trap foul balls to thus simulate player fouls to enable the table game to be played more realistically.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to a table soccer game and more particularly to apparatus for such a game that, to a great extent, closely adapts play of the table game to the real soccer game.

The table soccer game according to the invention is characterized in that one round penalty area opening is respectively situated in each table end wall to the left and to the right of the goal opening or area, with the penalty openings situated closer to the sides of the field than to the goal openings and being somewhat beveled at the bottom so that a ball rolling on the game table can easily enter the opening. The diameter of these penalty openings falls short of the height of the soccer goals. Each penalty opening is in communication, by means of a short longitudinal channel through the table end wall, with a collecting cup at the external front wall of the game table so that a ball entering the penalty opening is deposited in the collecting cup outside the table. Each penalty opening is provided with a flap or cover member connected on the end wall inside the table adjacent the opening and is adapted to be manually pivoted to cover the opening or be pivoted upwardly to a stored position to leave the opening uncovered and free to receive the ball in play on the table.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The drawings, by way of example, illustrate one goal end of a table soccer game according to the invention, and the operation of the invention will become apparent to one familiar with such games from the specification hereinafter following, by reference to the drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view through the table soccer game, the view being taken substantially along line lI of FIG. 2 and showing the covered openings on opposite sides of the goal; and

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary top plan view of one end of the table soccer game wherein only the actuating rod for the goalkeeper is illustrated, but wherein the actuating rods for the other game figures, arranged according to well known constructions of the prior art, are indicated only by dot-dash lines.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring to the drawings in greater detail, a high frame 1 of a game surrounds the playing field 2, so that the playing field in effect is recessed in an open box-like structure. A plurality of actuating rods 3 are supported in bearings 4 and 5 in the longitudinal side walls of the frame 1, so as to be slightly rotatable and longitudinally displaceably in the bearings. Each actuating rod 3 carries game figures, in the well known manner, of which only the goalkeeper 6 is shown on its respective actuating rod 3 in the drawings. It is understood that the rods 3, represented by dot-dash lines for sake of simplicity, each supports two or more playing figures in the usual manner, and only the rods 3 at each end of the table that support the goalkeeper figure 6, as shown, support only a single figure. Foam rubber bushings 7 and 8 are provided on the actuating rod 3 to the left and to the right of the game figure 6 and with respect to the player figures on rods 3 other than the goalkeeper 6 shown, they function as bumpers to prevent the figures, even during vigorous playing, from striking too hard the inner side of the side walls 1 as the rods 3 and the figures carried thereby are quickly shifted laterally in bearings 4 and 5 and relative to table surface 2.

Arms 9 and 10 are connected to the figure of the goalkeeper 6, and extend from the figure through a horizontal slot 11 in the front wall 17. These arms prevent a player from reaching from above the goalkeeper 6 and plugging-up or clogging the goal opening 12 with his hand or the like to block the ball shot into the goal and thus wrongfully retain the ball in play on the table. The arms 9 and 10 also limit the travel of the goalkeeper figure 6 in the lateral direction due to the length of slot 11. Blocks 13, arranged on a guide rod 14, make it possible to record the scored goals by shifting one scoring block from one end of rod 14 to the other and for each scored goal. Ashtrays 15 and 16 connected to the top of the table end walls promote cleanliness of the playing area.

According to the invention, penalty openings 18 and 19, preferably round in shape, are provided in each front wall 17 of the game table end wall, respectively to the left and to the right of the goal opening 12 and positioned more toward the side walls 1 of the table than toward the goal 12. The openings have a beveled or fiat portion 20 and 21, respectively, at the bottom adjacent the table and have a diameter which is somewhat smaller than the height 22 of the goal opening 12 but are large enough in diameter so the playing ball can easily roll into the openings. Flaps 23 and 24 are pivotally connected to wall 17 by pins 25 and 26 respectively adjacent the openings 18 and 19 and are pivotable from a down closed position, covering the openings 18 and 19 as shown in full lines in the drawings, upwardly and outwardly about the pins 25,26 to a stored position shown in dotted lines in FIG. 1, to open the penalty openings 18 and 19. The openings 18 and 19 respectively form one end of short ball conveying channels 27 and 28, extending through the table end wall, which terminate in respectively separate collecting cups 29 and 30 on the external front wall of the table.

Before initiating play, the players decide if they want to play the game with or without penalty kicks and penalty goals as in an actual soccer game. If the players agree to play without penalty kicks for foul play, all four flaps or cover members 23 and 24 are flipped down by hand to their closed positions covering the penalty openings 18 and 19 before the game begins and no player touches the flaps again before the end of the match. If the players decide to play the game with penalty kicks for foul play they turn all four cover members 23 and 24 to the raised positions so that the openings 18 and 19 are uncovered and the channels 27 and 28 are able to function to convey a ball entering a channel to the respective collecting cup 29 or 30 from which it is then removed and placed back on the table for a free penalty kick.

Thus, if, for example, a ball has rolled into the penalty opening 18 or 19, i.e. into the penalty area, this is considered a foul by a defender. Then the ball is removed from the collecting cup and the opponent or attacker may execute a free kick toward the defender's goal 12 with this ball from the marked point P on the field 2.

By making this foul and the penalty kicks possible, the table soccer game becomes more realistically similar to the actual regular-size field soccer game and thus the play becomes more interesting and exciting, since a free penalty kick can often be deciding for the game, and it is now necessary for the defen ders of a goal to defend not only the goal 12 but also the penalty area or openings 18 and 19 as these are secondary goals.

Alternately, if a ball enters penalty opening 18 or 19 when an attacker last touched the ball it could be considered a foul by the attacker. The ball would then be taken from the collecting cup, placed on spot 31 on the table and the defending goalkeeper 6 would have a free kick away from the goal. If the ball entered a penalty opening off of a defender, it could be considered a foul by a defender and then an attacker playing piece on one actuating rod 3, the third rod from the defenders goal 12, would have a free kick with the ball toward the defenders goal from point P.

The terms and expressions which have been employed herein are used as terms of description and not of limitation, and there is no intention, in the use of such terms and expressions, of excluding any equivalents of the features shown and described or portions thereof, but it is recognized that various modifications are possible within the scope-of the invention claimed.

1 claim:

1. A table soccer game of the type having a playing field portion surrounded by raised opposite side walls and raised end walls, a plurality of actuating rods extending through said opposite side walls spaced transversely of and above said playing field portion and supporting playing members thereon depending adjacent said player field portion and adapted to contact a ball thereon, said actuating rods being rotatively and axially movable relative to said opposite side walls, the improvement comprising a goal opening centrallylocated in each of said raised end walls adjacent said playing field portion and adapted to receive a ball rolling on said playing field portion, first and second openings in each of said raised end walls on each side of said goal opening extending upwardly from the playing field portion and adapted to receive a ball rolling on the playing field portion, ball collecting cup means connected on the outside of said end walls away from said playing field portion, channels extending through said end walls connecting said first and second openings in communication with said collecting cup means and adapted to convey a ball to said collectlng cup means from said first and second openings, and individual cover members for each said first and second 1 openings pivotally connected to said end walls adjacent said openings and pivotable from a stored raised position in which said first and second openings are uncovered to a lowered position adjacent the playing field portion covering the openings.

2. A table soccer game as set forth in claim 1 in which said first and second openings are positioned in each said end wall more toward said opposite side walls than toward said goal opening.

3. A table soccer game as set forth in claim 2 in which said 'goal openings have a predetermined height, and the height of said first and second openings are less than the predetermined height of said goal openings.

4. A table soccer game as set forth in claim 3 in which said first and second openings are substantially round and bevelled toward the bottom at the junction with the playing field portion.

5. A table soccer game as set forth in claim 1 in which said collecting cup means comprise individual open ball collecting cups, accessible from outside the table, for each first and second opening. 

1. A table soccer game of the type having a playing field portion surrounded by raised opposite side walls and raised end walls, a plurality of actuating rods extending through said opposite side walls spaced transversely of and above said playing field portion and supporting playing members thereon depending adjacent said player field portion and adapted to contact a ball thereon, said actuating rods being rotatively and axially movable relative to said opposite side walls, the improvement comprising a goal opening centrally located in each of said raised end walls adjacent said playing field portion and adapted to receive a ball rolling on said playing field portion, first and second openings in each of said raised end walls on each side of said goal opening extending upwardly from the playing field portion and adapted to receive a ball rolling on the playing field portion, ball collecting cup means connected on the outside of said end walls away from said playing field portion, channels extending through said end walls connecting said first and second openings in communication with said collecting cup means and adapted to convey a ball to said collecting cup means from said first and second openings, and individual cover members for each said first and second openings pivotally connected to said end walls adjacent said openings and pivotable from a stored raised position in which said first and second openings are uncovered to a lowered position adjacent the playing field portion covering the openings.
 2. A table soccer game as set forth in claim 1 in which said first and second openings are positioned in each said end wall more toward said opposite side walls than toward said goal opening.
 3. A table soccer game as set forth in claim 2 in which said goal openings have a predetermined height, and the height of said first and second openings are less than the predetermined height of said goal openings.
 4. A table soccer game as set forth in claim 3 in which said first and second openings are substantially round and bevelled toward the bottom at the junction with the playing field portion.
 5. A table soccer game as set forth in claim 1 in which said collecting cup means comprise individual open ball collecting cups, accessible from outside the table, for each first and second opening. 